Carol Vorderman has revealed being on the Loose Women panel is "a hoot".

The presenter, who previously co-hosted Channel 4's Countdown with the late Richard Whiteley, said joining the latest series of the ITV chat show had been a great move.

"Since Richard died, I've missed being part of a gang. I've hosted programmes since but it's not quite the same," she added.

"I absolutely adore banter and when I hosted Loose Women a couple of times last year, I felt very at home."

The mother-of-two, who this year beat Pippa Middleton to the title of Rear Of The Year, insists she didn't feel too much pressure in front of the camera lens.

"On Countdown, people in the audience would say, 'Oh Carol, you're not half as fat as you look on the telly', which is funny," she revealed.

"A lot of women on telly are size six, so as a size 10, I'm at the larger end of the scale and telly adds a dress size and a half. But I'm quite happy. I haven't weighed myself for 12 years."

Carol - who hosts the Daily Mirror's Pride Of Britain Awards on ITV1 on Wednesday, October 5 - added: "I was on the front page for wearing jeans at the age of 50, which I thought was ridiculous. People should be able to wear what they want."